Sierra

This is a great example of a puzzle where you don’t need to get the theme to solve it, but when you do, it’s a delightful surprise. Lovely constructor note — looking forward to tomorrow’s puzzle.

Great puzzle, just the right amount of freshness for a Friday night. I want to say how much I appreciate this group — it is a good place, full of warmth and goodwill. Also. I think I just completed the archive — 11,227 puzzles as of tonight. An excellent form of therapy, crosswords and the Spelling Bee have made every day better and helped me through the tougher days. There is of course an endless supply of fresh puzzles elsewhere, but it’s not the same. Thanks to everyone who contributes to this excellent community.

The week is off to a grand start! Today’s puzzle is whimsical and fun. Monday’s quotes puzzle (GEEZ LOUISE, WHOANELLY, etc.) and Tuesday’s animal foods puzzle (HORSERADISH, CRABAPPLE, etc.) were also creative and charming. Excellent diversions, along with the start of Wimbledon and Sunday’s start of the Tour de France. Thanks to all the constructors and editors!

I feel compelled to add a fan letter to Brendan Emmitt Quigley. He’s a great constructor, and I found this Sunday challenging and fun. I learned new stuff, which is always a plus. BEQ is incredibly generous to offer 2X weekly puzzles on his site, always fresh and lively. And the Boston Typewriter Orchestra! All great contributions to the (crossword) community.

I always enjoy a Sam Ezersky puzzle, creative and fun. There is always something to learn. The best thing of the day, though, is Natan Last’s op-ed in the NYT. I took Natan’s JASA Crossword Construction class — he was an engaging, kind, and brilliant guy. The NYT is fortunate to have both Sam and Natan. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/10/opinion/crosswords-comfort-crisis.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/10/opinion/crosswords-comfort-crisis.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare</a>

Fun puzzle with lively clueing. Shout out to both Natan Last and Andy Kravis, who led our JASA class in the early COVID lockdown. Not sure what happened to our class puzzle, but both instructors were smart and engaging. Great memories, thanks to you both.

A nice story of puzzle collaboration among friends. Deb’s column refers several times to one co-constructor as Mr. Orenstein — seems like it should be Mr. Hartstein.

I love the constructor’s comment that this puzzle came together like magic — delightful theme, nice clean clues, nothing extraneous. Great Sunday afternoon diversion.

Stopping by to say I enjoyed this lively puzzle very much, and happy birthday to Mr. Hoody!